The Weekenders: Travels in the Heart of Africa

Description

What would happen if you took some of Britain's best writing talent, put them on a plane and flew them to one of the most extraordinary and inaccessible places on the planet? What would happen if you took Irvine Welsh from the streets of Edinburgh and showed him a remote, dangerous village in Africa? What would happen if you flew Alex Garland into one of the world's most hazardous war zones? And how would Tony Hawks react if you dragged him away from his tennis and asked him to write a song with a Sudanese tribesman? With Victoria Glendinning, Andrew O'Hagan, Giles Foden and WF Deedes, these writers have experienced for themselves one of the most beautiful and yet troubled lands in the world - The Sudan. This remarkable collection of short stories and evocative travel writing is their response - as diverse and unpredictable as the country itself.

Victoria Glendinning (Author) Victoria Glendinning is the author of several biographies- Elizabeth Bowen (1977); Edith Sitwell- A Unicorn among Lions (which won the Duff Cooper Memorial Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, 1981); Vita, a life of Vita Sackville-West (joint winner of the Whitbread Award for the best biography, 1983); Rebecca West (1987); Jonathan Swift (1998) and Trollope. Irvine Welsh (Author) Irvine Welsh travels a lot but when stationary he lives between the great capital cities of Edinburgh and London with his wife, Emma. Except in the winter, where you're more likely to find him in Miami Beach. Tony Hawks (Author) Tony Hawks lives in London. He leads a diverse life and has various 'jobs', such as performing stand up comedy, appearing as a panellist on TV and radio (Have I Got News For You, Just A Minute, I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue), acting, writing, playing tennis, and making music. Giles Foden (Author) All of the writers are bestselling authors and critically acclaimed. Andrew O'Hagan (Author) Monica Ali- Granta's 2003 Best of Young British; Brick Lane was a Sunday Times bestseller; Irvine Welsh- Trainspotting, Filth, Porno; Tony Hawks- Round Ireland with a Fridge, Playing the Moldovans at Tennis, One Hit Wonderland; Victoria Glendinning- biographies of Anthony Trollope, Vita Sackville-West and Rebecca West and novels, The Grown Ups, Electricity, Flight; Jenny Colgan- best-selling chick-lit novelist including Amanda's Wedding and Looking For Andrew McCarthy. Simon Garfield- prize-winning journalist The Nation's Favourite- The True Adventures of Radio 1, Mauve, Last Journey of William Huskisson; Bill Deedes- distinguished journalist, recently author of 'At War with Waugh'; Colm Toibin- celebrated Irish author The South, The Heather Blazing, The Blackwater Lightship shortlisted for Booker; Michael Atherton- former captain of the England cricket team, bestselling autobiography Opening Up; Bella Bathurst- regular contributor to The Guardian and author of both highly acclaimed non-fiction, The Lighthouse Stevensons, and fiction, Special; Edited by Andrew O'Hagan Our Father shortlisted for Booker & Whitbread, latest novel Personality, Granta 2003 Best Young British Writer. Alex Garland (Author) All of the writers are bestselling authors and critically acclaimed. W F Deedes (Author) All of the writers are bestselling authors and critically acclaimed.